


The Prince and the Thief

by Flantastic



Category: James Bond (Craig movies), James Bond (Movies), James Bond - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fairy Tale, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-10
Updated: 2020-12-10
Packaged: 2021-03-10 05:22:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,565
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27998949
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Flantastic/pseuds/Flantastic
Summary: A clever prince catches a wily thief.
Relationships: James Bond/Q
Comments: 13
Kudos: 87
Collections: Mi6 Cafe Prompt Fills





	The Prince and the Thief

**Author's Note:**

> Written for the Anon Gift Exchange, based on the prompt:
> 
> ' Every night a golden apple disappears from the king’s garden. Luckily, Q has a plan on how to catch the perpetrator. '

Once upon a time there was a king who lived in a golden palace.

He was married to a beautiful queen who had skin as pale as a lily, and lips as red as rubies, and eyes as green as emeralds, and hair as black as coals and they loved each other very much. As a wedding gift they were given a magical golden apple, the seeds of which they carefully buried in the garden within the walls of the castle. The tree that grew from them bore golden fruit and if any fruit was plucked by either of their hands, when they returned the next day another would be hanging in its place.

Over time they had many children. The first was a son whom they named Adam and the second was daughter that they named Beatrice and the third was a son named Charles and the fourth was a daughter named Delilah and then there was Edward and Fiona and Gerald and Harriet and Ian and Julia and Kristopher and Leona and Marcus and Nanette and Oliver and Peony, and they were all as blond and as blue eyed, as their father.

They thought that their family was complete but the queen fell pregnant again. Quentin was born after a long hard labour and soon afterwards the queen died, leaving her beloved king holding his new son who had skin as pale as a lily, and lips as red as rubies, and eyes as green as emeralds, and hair as black as coals.

The boy grew up differently to his brothers and sisters.

The other princes all wanted to go to war and fight great battles so one by one they trained hard and then left the palace to seek glory.

The princesses all wanted to get married so they practised their dancing and their needlework until one by one suitors came for them and they left the palace to seek love.

Quentin wanted to know how things worked so he devoted himself to his studies, only leaving the tall tower that housed his library once a day to walk in the garden with his father, who loved him dearly and had nicknamed him ‘Q’. In the garden where Q and his father walked there was the golden apple tree, the source of the kingdom’s wealth. On its branches hung twelve golden apples. Every day they would count the apples, and every day there was twelve. If the king plucked one, then by the time they returned the next day another would be hanging in its place.

Eventually the king grew lonely and married again. His new wife was a cruel woman, beautiful but heartless. More interested in the jewels and finery that the king bestowed upon her than anything else. She did not approve of her youngest step-son’s habits and was jealous of the king’s love for him and wanted him gone from the castle.

She arranged for him to be trained by the finest swordsmen in the land, hoping that he might ride off into battle, but Q cared not for fighting.

She arranged for beautiful princesses to visit, hoping that he might fall in love and leave with one but Q cared not for women.

Eventually she complained to the king.

“How can you allow him to squander his time tinkering?” She asked her husband. “A prince of his age should strike out on his own! Be of some use to the world!”

“His inventions help people.” The old king replied, proudly. “He helped the miller to improve the sails on his windmill so the grain is ground more quickly. He helped the farmer to irrigate his field with his designs for drainage so his crops grow more lushly. He helped the herdsmen to secure their fields with new fencing so that the sheep do not wander.”

“Pish!” The queen replied. “What good is it to help the poor when he could be useful overthrowing an enemy or forging new links by marrying well?”

The king would not see her reason though and eventually her mind turned to more sinister plans. 

One night she donned a black cloak and made her way into the village. At the far end there was a tavern where vagabonds and cutthroats did their business and drank their beer. She saw such a man and approached him. She made him an offer. If he would go to the castle after dark and steal one of the golden apples each night for a week, he could keep one of them. If he killed anyone who tried to stop him, he could keep them all.

The man agreed and the next day, while out on their walk Q and his father were dismayed to find that the golden apple tree only bore eleven fruits.

“Who would do such a thing?” The king said sadly. “A fruit plucked by any hand but mine will not grow back. Now we only have eleven apples.”

The prince was sad for his father.

“I will work on a plan and by the time the week is over, we will catch your thief.” Q promised.

A guard was placed under the tree but the next day he was found tied up tightly in ropes, a blindfold over his eyes. Another apple was missing.

“Who would do such a thing?” The king said sadly. “A fruit plucked by any hand but mine will not grow back. Now we only have ten apples.”

“I am working on my plan and by the time the week is over, we will catch your thief.” Q promised.

Two guards were placed under the tree but the next day they were found tied up in chains, blindfolds over their eyes. Another apple was missing.

“Who would do such a thing?” The king said sadly. “A fruit plucked by any hand but mine will not grow back. Now we only have nine apples.”

“I have almost finished my plan and by the time the week is over, we will catch your thief.” Q promised.

Three guards were placed under the tree but the next day they were found tied up in shackles, blindfolds over their eyes. Another apple was missing.

“Who would do such a thing?” The king said sadly. “A fruit plucked by any hand but mine will not grow back. Now we only have eight apples.”

“I have finished my plan and we will catch your thief tonight.” Q promised.

That night, under a full moon the thief crept back into the garden and went to pick another apple. Before he could twist it off the branch, a net as delicate and as strong as a spider’s web fell on him. He tried to run but it tangled up around him, binding his hands and feet. As he struggled a knife was pressed to his throat.

“Ho there thief, stop your struggling, you have been caught. Look up now and show me your face.”

The man looked up to see skin as pale as a lily, and lips as red as rubies, and eyes as green as emeralds, and hair as black as coals and he fell in love.

“It is true then,” James whispered, for that was his name.

“What is?” The prince asked.

“I heard that the young prince who lived in this castle was the most beautiful man in all the land so I took the job of stealing the golden apples.”

“Who would give you such a job?” The prince asked.

“The queen herself.” James replied. “She thought herself disguised but no one else wears jewels such as hers. I agreed although I had no interest in keeping the apples, they are here in my satchel for you to take back, and I did not wish to kill those that would stop me as she asked which was why I bound the guards.”

“So why _did_ you agree to such a task?”

“I had hoped I might catch a glimpse of you.”

“And what if I decide that you should be put to death for trespassing upon these royal gardens?”

“No matter. To see you is worth a thousand deaths, but I had heard that your beauty was matched only by your generous nature my liege. Could you be so cruel to one who has fallen in love with you so completely upon seeing you for the first time?”

Q smiled and was quite smitten by the handsome thief’s admission. The king was less so. Upon hearing of his wife’s plan, he rushed to her chambers.

“Treacherous viper!” He snapped. “Evil incarnate! You set in motion a plan knowing my son would be the one to put a stop to it! You hoped he would be killed!”

The queen protested but the king was resolute. He stripped her of the jewels and finery he had lavished upon her and sent her out barefoot into the world where she wandered and played no further part in this tale.

Q untied his thief and they talked all night and when the morning came, together they carefully planted the seeds from the apples that James had stolen. The trees that grew from them bore golden fruit and if any fruit was plucked by either of their hands, when they returned the next day another would be hanging in its place.

And they lived happily ever after.


End file.
